Display carton



' T 1 201 7 .March 8,1927. I a EVANS ,9

DISPLAY CARTON Filed June 2. 1924 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR Ben 0mm f 1/0/76 BY MVW A'r'r NEY'S March 8, 1927. B. NS

DI SPLAY CARTON Filed June 2. 1924 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR 59/7 0071?) fry/7s ATTORNEYS 1,620,197 March 8, 1927. B. EVANS v I DISPLAY CARTON Filed Jude 2. 1924 s Sheets-Sheet s 40 N All ,nllllll 54 av q" ATTORNEYS Patented Mar. 8, 1927.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

BENJAMIN EVANS, ALBAN Y, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR '1 O TOR! ORANGE PAPER OOH- PANY, OF OASTLETON-ON-HUDBOH, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION 01 NEW YORK.

DISPLAY CARTON.

Application filed June 2, 1924. Serial No. 717,245.

My invention relates to boxes and more.

' particularly to boxes which may be used as the retail store.

containers for merchandise from the time it leaves the manufacturer until the time the contents reach the hands of the customer in One object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved box which constitutes an efficient article container during shipment or storage, and which may be ad usted to provide a highly attractive display of articles of the type contained in the box.

Another object is to provide a combined display and article containing box which any unskilled person can easily change from its condition when it arrives filled with merchandise into the condition in which it displays the sample merchandise.

Another ob ect is to-provide a box adapted to be packed at the factory both with merchandise to be sold and with merchandise for display so that the Storekeeper need only open the box in order to have it instantly.

ready for use on his counter.

Another object is to provide a box of this type with means for displaying sample arti-- cles'of the type contained within the box while protecting such samples from'becoming shop-worn or being stolen.

I accomplish the foregoing and other objects in the preferred construction illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 shows blanks which may be folded to produce the novel box; and a protecting hood for the merchandise display rack;

Fig. 2 is a perspective on a reduced scale showing the box ready for shipment filled with merchandise;

Fig, 3 is a similar perspective of the box with the outside wrapper removed;

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal vertical section through the box with the parts in the posi-. tion occupied during shipment. one possible position .of the protecting hood being indicated in broken lines;

Fig. 4 is a section on a smaller scale similar to Fig. 4 showing the box ready to be packed;

Fig. 5 is a section similar to Fig. 4 with the box opened and the sample merchandise on display and the hood infplace;

- Fig. 6 is aperspective front view of the box open, without the hood, with parts i broken away to show constructional details;

Fig. 8 is a perspective similar to Fig. 7

but with the box empty to show its construc- 1 tion i Fig. 9 is a perspective showing the customers or front view of the box shown in Fig. I

7 the display protecting hood being in place; an

Fig.10 is a view on a reduced scale similar to Fig. 9, but with the display protectingv hood raised.

The particular box selected for illustration is designed to contain soft collars and preferably, but not necessarily,- is made of box board. The box consists in general of a body'or containing portion, a-dis lay rack, and a hood to protect the merchan ise in the rack. While the entire structure may be made from a single blank in a manner to be described, I prefer for economy of material to make the container and rack in one piece, and the hood a separate piece. In the box -and rack blank shown in Fig. 1, the front part 12 of the top of the box may be-consid ered the'cent'ral element to which other por tions of the box are attached. The. broken lines in Fig. 1 indicate scoring in the box board blank to assist in folding. A right hand side wall 13 extends to one side'of the top wall 12 and has a further extension 14 adapted to form the bottom wall of the box and a flap 15 which may be secured to the left band edge of left hand side Wall 16, as by gluing, or the flap 15 may be provided with tabs to tuck through the edge of side wall 16. Below the portion 12 in Fig. 1 is indicated the front wall 17 having a flap 18, which is attached to the edge 19 of the bot- .tom 14 when the blank is folded. To complete the enclosure at the front end of the box wings 20 and 21 are provided, being shown attached to walls16 and 13 respectively, but obviously they might equally well be attached to opposite edges of front wall 17'. -The same is true of the fla could as well be integral with slde wall 16' as with the bottom 14. The rear half 22 of the top-wall of the. box is cutaway from side walls 13 and 16 for a pu ose to be described. To close the rear end 0 thebox for shipment, the portion 23 extends from the rear 15 which edge of top wall 22 and is provided with side flaps 24-and 25 having extensions 26 and 27, the latter being unnecessary in carrying out the purelyenclosing function of'the box but serving as elements in the display rack in a manner to be described. The parts 22 to 32 inclusive constitute the display rack which is supported upon the front portion 12 of the top wall or cover of the box when open as shown-in Fig 5, and nests within the rear of the boxwhen closed, as shown in vertical position, the bottom wall.- 14 is folded to a horizontalposition, and the flap l5 suitably attached within the ,outer edge of left hand side wall 16. The flaps 20 and 21 are then folded at right angles to their respectiveside walls and front wall 17 is then folded in place and retained by suitably securing flap 18 within bottom wall 14. The box as thus constructed is then turned over and the remainder of the blank is folded to form the display rack which will occu y the position shown in Figures 5 and 6. he rear topwall 22 is folded to=a vertical position, the rear end 23 is next bent through 180 to extend vertically downward in front of the part 22, and the side flaps 24 and 25 are bent forwardly into the vertical planes of side walls-13, and 16, while extensions 26 and 27 fit above the portion 28,v

which rests upon the top front wall 12 (Figure 6). The portion 29 is then bent 180 to overlie extensions 26, 27, and portion 28 thus forming a base portion for the rack. In order to move portion 29 into this position, it is necessary to bend the back wall 30 of the display rack into a vertical position and to fold flaps 31 and 32 forwardly so that they fit within and are held in place by flaps 24 and 25.

If the nature of the merchandise to be shipped in and displayed by the box permits it to be compressed without damage, the sam les for display are then fixed in the disp ay' rack. In the case selected for illustration, in which soft collars are to be displayed, slots 42 are cut in .the back wall 30 of the display rack and sample collars 43 are passed through the slots so as to oceupy the position shown in Figures 5, 9, and 10. In this instance the dimensions of the. box are suitable for the display of two collars side by side,'but it is o vious that the inmay be packed'in vertical rows.

played ispurely a question of choice in selecting the dimensions of the box. When the box and rack are made fromone blank and.- the protecting hood from a separate blank, the box and rack as thus folded. in their open position are ready to be packed with the merchandiseforshipment. When thisconsists of soft collars contained within the usual long shallow packages 44, one or two collars in each package, the number of individual packages required to fill the box are inserted from the rear. The box is usually designed to contain what is found to be the desirable assortment of sizes which, for the convenience of the retail salesman,

For example, the smallest size articles may comprise the bottom layer of packages, while the largest sizes make up the top layer. The number of styles of article contained within the box will ordinarily correspond with the number of samples in the display rack. When, asin the present case, two.

styles of collar are shown in the display rack, the two left hand rows of packages 44 (Fig. 7) contain the same style collar as that displayed directly over and in front of said rows, while the two right-hand rows contain a different style such as displayed in a similar position relative to said right hand rows. Thus, acustomer seeing acollar of the style which he desires to purchase, mere- 1y points to the desired collar and the salesman, without hunting, picks out'the necessary size.

When the box has been thus packed, the

display, rack with its collarsis tipped to the rear so that the portion 22 of the top wall is in its enclosing position. The rack is then further swung about the rear edge of the top wall as an axis, which may conveniently be accomplished by gripping the front edge of portions 28-and 29with the thumb I and forefinger, the swinging movement being continued until the .rack occupies its closed position shown in Figure 4. In this position the part 28 rests upon the bottom wall 14, the front edge of' the parts 28, 29, sliding in between the bottom layer of packages 44 and said bottom wall'of the box,

while the flaps 24, 31, and 25, 32, slide in between the side walls and the packa es so that the rack maybe said to nest within the rear end of the box. Owing to'the elasticity of the box material, the display rack 00 cupies practically no useful space. In other words the box need not be made any larger in order to contain both a certain number of pgckages and the display rack than would necessaryin case the dis lay rack were omitted. It is ,to benoted t at the mozgg of the display rack from open to cl necessitate substantially no lengthening of the box, and furthermore are kept from in-. jury during shipment and in readiness .for

immediate display when required.

In the construction in which the protecting hoodis a separate piece, .it may be conveniently shipped by having its'body portion placed across the top ofthe closed .box with flaps 36 and 37 lying against the opposite side walls of the box as shown in Figure 3. The box and hood may then be held together and protected during shipment by the'application of a band which completely encircles the .box.

The box is now'ready for storage or shipment and may be kept in this condition indefinitely, since a consideration of the details of construction will show that it is vprac tically dust-proof. VVhen the contents of the box' are needed to go on sale, the band 45 is removed, the hood lifted off from the top of the box which is placed on the counter with its front end 17 facing the customers. The box is then opened by moving the display rack from the closed position shown in Fig.4 to the display position shown in Fig, 6. The protecting hood is then applied by. bending down its back 34 behind'portion 22 of the display rack. In thisposition the through which the sample articles may be surface 35 of the hood naturally falls into place in front of the sample articles. The

rack (Fig; 5) and the flaps 36- and 37 are folded downto the position shown in Figs. 7 to 10. The tabs 38 and 39 are folded around behind-portion 34 and tucked into slots 46 to hold the hood in place. The part 35 is cut away until it merely serves as 'a frame to hold-the transparent window 41,

viewed. In some cases the resiliency of the box board or other material of. which the .box and .rack are composed, will be so great,

that the rack would not remain fixed in its open or article-displaying position unless positively held. In that case any desired means for holding the rack in such po ition may be employed, but preferably I use gummed' seals 47 to secure the front corners of flaps 36'and 37 to the side walls of the box.

it particularly emphasize the dust-proof I- nature of my construction when made as thus described. .Such dust as can possibly get into. the inside of the display rack when covered with theprotecting-hood must filter between tightly fitting vertical walls and work its way vertically upward for a considerable distance. -It has been found that 'the amount of dust s'o 'filterin in will'be negli ibleduring the normal 1311118 required to se 1. the contents. of the box. In other the material, such as box board, from which the box and display rack are made, need be finished only on one side. When, as is usually the case, it is desired 'to print some form of advertising matter on the portions of the box which may be seen by the public, such printed'matter may also be applied only-t0 the finished side of the blank. The

construction is such that the finished side of the blank will be the only side apparent to= the customer; that is, in any view other than a rear view the finished side only of'the blank is visible. Likewise, the material for a the protecting hood need be finished on only one side andmay or may not carry advertising or decorative printing as desired.

In certain cases, as where the blank is not finished or coated on either side or where material other than box board is used to construct thegbox, it is possible to embody all three parts of the box, namely, the containing portion, display rack, and protecting hood, in a single integral blank. This construction is shown in Fig. 1 and as shown, may be brought about by including aportion 33 between the back wall 30 of the display rack and-the rear cover 34 of the protecting hood.. Q

The folding operation isoidentical with 'flap 40 is tucked under bottom wall 28 of thethat previously described in the" case of the dropped .over the front of the rack as in the case of the two-piece blank construction.

for shipment, window 41 is first swung around clockwise as seen in Figure 5,until it-hangs in a vertical position with flap 40 at the bottom, and side flaps 36 and 37 tucked within the box side walls 13 and 16 respectively. The rack is then tipped rearwardly .-,,-about the dividing line between the front and rear port'ib'iis 12 and 22 of the top wall until it is in the position shown in Figure 4, in which position the edges 38 and 39 of flaps 38 and 39 respectively rest against the bottom wall 14 of the box and .In adjustingthe single blank construction support the rack while thepackages44 'are being put into the box. When the box has been filled, the display rack is then'rotated further" into the-position shown in Fig. 4, in which position it is ready for shipment. With this construction the entire unit is in one piece and self-contained, and the use a of a band 45 around the outside of the box is optional. The. one-piece construction,

however, does not possess the advantage that the stock from which the box is made need be coated and printed on only one side, for that surface of the blank forming the portion of the box and rack which isv visible to a" customer is the surface of the blank opposite the surface which is visible in the protecting hood. 0n the other hand, this construction is simpler to operate and there is nothing to get lost during shipment, so that the choice between'the unitary blank and the two-part blank hinges upon the choice of material, and the design and printed matter which are to be incorporated on the box.

The appearance of the box when closed or open is identical regardless of the number of parts making up the blank. The protecting hood is sufiiciently dust-proof in either case, and the operating features are the same. With my construction, the customer can see, but cannot thumb over or steal the sample merchandise. Moreover, it is diflicult for him to help himself, since he cannot tell where to reach foran article of the desired size inasmuch as this information appears only on the rearend of packages 44 which are entirely out of sight from the customers viewpoint. This same feature permits the salesman to select the desired style and size article with substantially no lost time what ever, and thus insures satisfactory service to the customer and satisfaction to the merchant in that 'the customer must purchase the goods in order to take them away. While I have described the invention in detail as applied to boxes for the packing and display of soft collars, I would have it understood that I consider the box applicable to many other types of merchandise and I do not limit myself to the particular construction best adapted for soft collars. For example, other articles of merchandise may not require slots 42 as means for supporting them for display. Proper supporting means for practically any type of merchandise will readily be suggested to those skilled in the art, and I have therefore described but one of the'possible specific embodiments of my invention. j

What I claim is:

1. A box-board blank having one sidefinished, fold-able into a box to enclose merchandise,one of the walls of the box be- 'ing adapted to fold back upon an adjacent wall overlapping a considerable portion of said wall, thereby opening one end of the box, the portion of said overlapped wall adjacent the first fold being in turn foldable outwardly into an .upright. position to give access to the contents of the box, the foldable walls forming a rack and being provided with means for attaching merchandise to the sides of the rack directed away from the open end of the box, the finished side only of the blank being visible from the front of the box.

A box comprising six walls adapted to enclose merchandise, one of the walls being adapted to fold back upon an adjacent wall, the portion of the double wall thus produced adjacent the fold being in turn outwardly foldable to an upright position to give access to thecontents of the box, the folded walls formin a rack and being provided with means for attaching merchandise to the side of the rack directed away fromthe open end of the box.

3. A box comprising top, bottom, side and end wallsnormally arranged completely to enclose merchandise, one of the end walls being foldable back upon a: portion of the top wall which is foldable to an uprightv position to give access to the contents from the top and rear,'said end wall having an to lie flat upon the front portion of the top wall when the box is open, said extension being adapted to lie flat upon the rear portion of the bottom wall when the box is closed.

5. A box having a rear wall provided with an extension, which rear wall, together with the extension, is adapted to serve as a display rackwhen the box is open, said rack being adapted to display merchandise on the side toward the front wall and said rack being adapted to nest within the box when closed whereby substantially the entire bottom of the box may be filled with merchandise.

Signed at Castleton-on-Hudson, N, Y., this 17th day of May, 1924.

- BENJAMIN EVANS. 

